The instant application should be granted the priority dates of May 16, 2006, the filing date of the corresponding German patent application 20 2006 007 833.9, as well as May 14, 2007, the filing date of the international patent application PCT/EP2007/004266.
The invention relates to an escalator or a travelator (moving walkway).
The steps of escalators and the pallets or panels of travelators are usually supported by chain rollers and supporting rollers, which run on respectively assigned rails. In return travel, the steps or pallets must be transported upside down and at the ends of the travelator or escalator a reversal must respectively be made. this requires that the rollers and hence the respectively associated rails are mutually offset in a regular manner in the lateral direction. Thus the chain rollers with the chain roller rail generally run very far out in a lateral plane, while the supporting rollers run on another lateral plane, generally inwardly offset. This requires, on the other hand, that as a result of this lateral offset, the necessary overall width of the escalator or travelator increases in the lateral direction.
In order to prevent this, it has long been known to make the rollers and hence the associated rails run at least partially beneath the steps or pallets. This requires, on the other hand, an enlarged overall height of the escalator or travelator, which turns out to be significant, since the particular escalator or the particular travelator has then to be increased in overall height both with respect to the forward travel and with respect to the return travel. This measure runs counter in this regard to the desire for a slim escalator design, in particular in the region of the frame.
In order to obtain a reduced overall width without having in this regard to accept an increased overall height, it has already become known, for example from DE-OS-23 42 849, to provide the chain rollers right next to the particular step. Here too, the necessary reversal of the running of the step belt must, of course, be realized and the return travel here too requires the step band to be transported in the inverted position.
In order to realize a slim design of the escalator combined with a small overall height, it has already been proposed to realize the frame of the escalator as slim as possible and tight against the escalator rails. For example, in latticed frame structures, a support is ensured which is rigid and sag-proof, at the same time as the material usage remains low.
Although such a solution allows a relatively compact frame structure, the overall width of the overall height—depending on the chosen arrangement of the chain rollers or supporting rollers—is relatively large.